Hand saddle



Sept. 20, 1949. MaODONALD 2,482,192

HAND SADDLE Filed April 24, 1948 Patented Sept. 20, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SADDLE Ray Arthur MacDonald, North Plainfield, N. J.

Application April 24, 1948, Serial No. 23,040

1 Claim. 1

This invention concerns an adjunct for fishing rods of the casting type and is in the nature of a saddle for shielding and seating the index finger of the hand and serving to protect portions of the hand, and especially the nodes or side of the index finger, from abrasions through contact with parts of the reel, while at the same time providing a more secure grip of the rod.

An additional primary object is to render available a device of this nature capable of being readily applied to rods of conventional form without resorting to nuts or screws or other affixing means which would form projections or lugs tending towards discomfort to the hand and detract from the smooth and continuous contours so desirable in such a device.

Various proposals have heretofore been made towards affording users more secure grips for casting rods, but in general these involve handles entirely different from those on conventional rods, and hence compel the user to discard his favorite rod, or the handle thereof, and acquire a new and quite different handle of the pistol grip type which must be specially elaborated to provide for the mounting of the reel. Such proposals necessarily involve considerable expense, which my device eliminates.

By virtue of the herein described device, and because of its extreme simplicity and low cost, the user is now enabled to fit one to each of his rods, or readily to detach a single unit and reafiix it to any conventional red, as the occasion may demand.

Other objects and advantages will be in part indicated in the following description and in part rendered apparent therefrom in connection with the annexed drawings.

To enable others skilled in the art so fully to apprehend the underlying features hereof that they may embody the same in the various ways contemplated by this invention, drawings depicting a preferred typical construction have been annexed as a part of this disclosure and, in such drawings, like characters of reference denote corresponding parts throughout all the views, of which:

Figure 1 is a perspective of a conventional rod to which my device is aflixed and showing its relation to the hand.

Figs. 2 and 3 are perspectives from different viewpoints of my device isolated and showing its form.

Fig. 4 is a cross-section through line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, an ordinary rod A carries a conventional reel B which is habitually fixed to it by a pair of straps l and 2 which are integral with the base of the reel. These straps are tightened by ordinary screws 3 and 4 and thus the reel is secured firmly in place.

In using this conventional set-up, the fisherman, of course, must grasp the handle very tightly to prevent it from slipping or turning in his hand. It is necessary for him to grasp it close to the reel with his hand D in the position shown by Fig. 1 so that his thumb 6 may at all times be in position to act as a brake on the line as it is being reeled out. His fingers In, H and i2 encircle the rod to hold it against the palm of his hand.

His index finger 9, as a consequence, is in tight contact with parts of the reel; especially with its rear clip 2 and in this position its side nodes are subjected to abrasion by the rear edge of the clip. Those who fish for any extended time, as most fishermen do, often develop sores on the side of the index finger from this contact, and many who do much fishing retain permanent scars therefrom.

This is avoided by my readily attachable device C which provides a shield portion ll, l8, and I9, modeled to conform to the natural curvatures of the side of the index finger where it passes partly around and under the rod-handle. These portions are rigid and lead to and merge into a rigid small rest I4 in the nature of a lug which serves as a seat for the end of the index finger as shown by Fig. 1.

For the purpose of mounting the device on the rod, it is provided with an integral extension HS in the nature of a neck and this terminates in a shoe l5 which is arcuate in shape to conform with the curve of the rod. As aforesaid, the device is die stamped from sheet metal of a nature comparatively non-corrosive to saltwater, such as brass. It will be observed that all portions, other than the neck, have compound curves and hence are capable of resisting distortion or bending, whereas, the neck I6 is ring-like in shape and admits of being bent enough to spread the device sufliciently to admit the rod into place as shown by Fig. 4; whereupon by bending the neck the device may readily be brought into a snug fit with the rod, and held in place by the clamp-bands I and 2 as shown by Fig. 1. When in this position, the device is ready for usage, and provides a sort of socket for the index finger which, along its side, rests in the seat I3 (Fig. 2) which conforms to its natural curvature and protects the side of the finger from ing a rod; said shield-like portion having a rigid side rest for the tip of the finger, and having a,

bendable neck-like extension; said extension terminating in an elongated shoe for enabling the device to be clamped immovably to the rod.

RAY ARTHUR MACDONALD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STA ES PA'I'ENTS 7 Number Name Date is 629,436 Faust July 25, 1899 Huffman Aug. 3, 1909 

